


A Ghostly Burden

by Jazzy_Cat



Category: Luigi's Mansion (Video Games), Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: Adventure, Betrayal, Boo Headcanons, But he does it anyway, Character Death, Enemies to Temporary Partners, Gen, Horror, Illusions, Kidnapping, King Boo is So Done, Letters, Luigi is the reluctant Helper, Magic, No one wants to help King Boo, Not even Luigi, Or is it Ghostnapping?, trapped together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:21:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21902158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jazzy_Cat/pseuds/Jazzy_Cat
Summary: On the night he planned on luring Luigi into yet another trap, King Boo discovers that all of his minions have gone missing, leaving only a strange letter behind as a clue. Having no choice but to venture out in search of this ghost snatcher, King Boo discovers the only way to bring back his missing subjects is to team up with his most hated arch-nemesis, Luigi.Needless to say, none of them are happy about this.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 58





	A Ghostly Burden

Tonight was the big night.

And for such a grand night, everything had to be nothing short of perfect.

King Boo had been brewing his latest scheme for quite a while now, and it was finally time to put it into action. His grin widened, his sharp teeth glinting in the dim candle lights flickering ominously on the many scaffold board shelves lining the walls. His piercing gaze turned to look out the window of his newest, well-crafted and dilapidated mansion, and he hummed in satisfaction when he saw the downpour drenching everything for miles.

A loud and thunderous roar pieced the sky like a sonic boom, and with it a blinding light flashed before his eyes. He winced at the intensity of the light, the brightness enough to bring tears to his sensitive eyes. He turned around, heading further into the darkness of his mansion.

Phasing in and out of several grand rooms and hallways, the king of all Boos headed for his secret altar, where he kept the carefully thought-out letter.

Who was it addressed to? Why, none other than Luigi, of course.

King Boo let out a chuckle when his gaze landed on the piece of parchment, lying conspicuously in the very center of the alter – right below the _still_ empty picture frame, in fact.

He grabbed the letter with his short, stubby arms and read over its contents one last time, just to make sure it was worded precisely like how he wanted it.

_Dear Luigi,_

_Congratulations!_

_You have been chosen as our lucky winner of receiving six limited tickets to our newly established amusement park, The Thrill Seeker! Enclosed within this letter is a map of our location and the six aforementioned tickets._

_We hope to see you and your friends soon for a thrilling ride!_

_\- The Thrill Seeker Foundation_

Perfect. Absolutely perfect.

With the way that _infernal_ Luigi’s brain usually worked, he would fall for it like the man had never been fooled before. King Boo was sure his nemesis would be going through a _roller coaster_ of emotions once he found out it was all a devious plot to get rid of him – once and for all.

The king cackled madly at his own brilliance.

“Now, to have this letter delivered...” He said.

King Boo took a deep breath, raised his voice, and then commanded for a specific Boo to appear.

“PostBoo!”

His voice reverberated throughout the entire mansion. He waited for said Boo to arrive with poorly contained impatience, and when no one arrived, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

“Confound that blasted Boo! Where could he have possibly gone off to at this crucial time?!” King Boo hissed, but then calmed himself down by thinking rationally. “No matter.” He reasoned. “I’ll just have another one of my little subjects deliver it.”

“BamBoo!”

For the second time in a row, not a single soul stirred – quite literally.

The spectral king felt his temper slowly rise. Things could **not** fail now – he simply _wouldn’t_ allow it.

“GameBoo!” He tried again. “Boomeo! Booffant! Boofuddler!”

Despite the many names leaving his mouth, no one came when he called.

“That’s IT!” King Boo seethed. “Do I _seriously_ have to find one of my own blasted minions to do a task as simple yet crucial as this?!”

So it would seem.

The king phased out of his alter and roamed the many halls, rooms, foyers, kitchens, bathrooms – every place his mansion had to offer. Still, not a single Boo could be found, and that was also when King Boo noticed how his strength had depleted slightly – something that only happened when no other Boos were around.

But that simply couldn’t be. The only times his loyal subjects weren’t present was when Luigi-

“Pah!” King Boo spat. “I better find an explanation for what is going on, and it better be good!”

Never mind the fact that he was actually starting to worry – if only slightly. Minions they may be, they were still his friends.

Once he had roamed the entire mansion, it truly dawned on King Boo how no one, not even a single Boo, was present. It didn’t matter which room he checked, how many beds he upturned or even how far from the mansion he was willing to go to search – he was completely and utterly alone.

It left him at a loss for what to do.

“How is this possible?” He muttered as he floated back to his mansion, the rain soaking his round body. “They better not have left on a vacation or something equally stupid again!”

If no one showed up soon, all hell would break loose once they returned.

When he reached the large front doors of the creepy and run-down mansion, King Boo noticed something out of place. A piece of paper, not much unlike the one he had left behind in the alter (for it would have gotten all wet had brought it along). It lay innocently on the front porch, and he could just make out his own name written on it in a messy handwriting.

King Boo raised an eyebrow and picked it up, using his magic to rip the envelope open to reveal its contents.

The letter was short and to the point, but what was written on it had him pause for a second. First, he felt incredulous. Then came confusion, and after that...seething anger.

_King Boo,_

_I have all of your little minions._

_Come find me if you dare._

_\- Ghost Snatcher_

The temperature dropped several degrees and turned the air frigid cold. Despite this, the letter still managed to burst into flames that reduced the message to nothing but ashes, the particles scattering in the wind. King Boo lowered his arms.

Then he snapped.

“What is the meaning of this?!” He hissed, slamming his tongue into the doors and throwing them off their hinges. “Ghost Snatcher? _Ghost Snatcher?!_ You and your _silly_ _little name_ dare snatch my subjects?! And ruin my plans to destroy Luigi too?!”

When he entered the foyer, another few objects were immediately demolished.

“That’s it! I’ll find you, _Ghost Snatcher_ , and I’ll make you wish you had **never** crossed me! Then I’ll trap you in a painting!”

This unfortunately meant he wouldn’t be able to enact his plan to trap Luigi and his little friends for a while, but it was a price he was willing to pay. Getting his Boo minions back was his top priority, along with making that so-called _Ghost Snatcher_ ’s life a living nightmare.

The question was; how would he go about this? King Boo had no clues or leads to follow, so how would he find this fiend? If this was a game of hide-and-seek, his adversary was certainly playing very unfair. Well, he would figure something out.

He always did.

* * *

It didn’t take King Boo too long to come up with a solution, even if it was one he didn’t like. No, he didn’t like it one bit.

“...Mingling with those mortals.” He said, his ethereal voice echoing down the torch-lit corridor while he floated back and forth. “I can’t believe I’m even considering this, but it’s the only way I can think of. I can’t locate that fiend without any clues, and there are zero here at my mansion...”

He had checked, but the only thing that Ghost Snatcher had left behind was the letter he burned a few hours ago. In hindsight, that might not have been the smartest thing to do, but he always did have trouble controlling his anger. It mattered little in the end; he still had to visit the Mushroom Kingdom’s many places in order to gather Intel.

“I’ll get this over with, and then I can get back to my original plan. But first...”

King Boo turned his direction to a particular room he had avoided like the plague since creating this mansion; Hellen Gravely’s quarters. Yes, that ghost lady was here as well – she had insisted on following him, declaring her utmost devotion to his cause and that she wouldn’t fail him twice. Ugh, Hellen Gravely… King Boo still saw her as an incompetent, _useless_ ghost to discard.

He had let her stay, sure, but that was all. He told her to leave him be and not to seek him out unless he asked for her presence (which he hadn’t). Now, though, he found himself floating before her door, and the spectral monarch inwardly braced himself for the horror that was Hellen Gravely’s obsession.

Phasing through the door, King Boo emerged to the sight of one painting after another depicting none other than himself. Not only that, several sculptures, figurines, slippers, statues, plush toys, posters and even carpets were made in his visage. King Boo shivered.

This was beyond mad. Art, yes, but still mad.

Blatantly ignoring the paintings – for seeing himself in one made him remember times he’d rather forget – the king found Hellen Gravely sitting at her dressing table, her yellow eyes wide as she stared at him. Her right hand was outstretched and held the makeup she applied regularly – GheistPaint, if he remembered correctly – and the other one clutched her featherless boa tight.

“K-K-King Boo!” She stammered, applying a large amount of powder to her face before putting her powder compact away. She adjusted her beehive-styled hair and stood up quickly, floating over to his large form. “W-what a pleasant surprise! I didn’t know you’d be visiting me today!”

“Yes, well neither did I...” King Boo grumbled. “But something has come up, and my plans have been delayed in favor of getting rid of a _new_ pest.”

“A new pest? What happened?” She questioned, arching an eyebrow. “Weren’t you going to lure Luigi to your new amusement park tonight?”

“I WAS, yes… But _someone_ has nabbed all of my minions. All of them!”

“...What?” Hellen Gravely said, looking very bewildered.

“I want you to reach out to whoever you know and gather information about someone known as the ‘Ghost Snatcher’.” King Boo said, ignoring her question in favor of this demand. “And I want to know of any Boo sightings as well.”

Hellen nodded frantically. “I- yes, of course, King Boo! Leave it to me!”

“Fine.” King Boo said, and then turned to leave. He had more important things to take care of.

“Y-you won’t regret putting your faith in me!” Hellen shouted after him.

“What faith?” King Boo said. “Just because I let you stay here does not mean that I _like_ you, nor that I trust you. Just do your job for once, do you understand?”

“I-but...”

“Do you understand?!” He shouted, his shrill voice piercing the otherwise quiet room.

“Y-yes, King Boo!”

He bobbed up and down in the equivalence of a nod.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a _pest_ to exterminate...”

After that brief conversation, King Boo went over to his throne room and began to form a new plan. He was sure no one wanted to help a Boo, much less their king, but in order to gather information about this new threat, the spectral monarch would have to mingle with the mortals he so loathed. There were a few ways he could go about this.

Either he went as he currently was and demanded answers from whoever he met through sheer force and intimidation, or he went in disguise as a villager of the Mushroom Kingdom. It wasn’t hard to do, since he was the master of illusions. With only a small amount of his magical powers exerted, King Boo could disguise himself as, say, a Yoshi, a Toad, or even a Koopa. There was also the option of possession, but he didn’t feel like wandering around in someone else’s body for longer than necessary, so he put that plan aside in favor of the other two. In the end, King Boo decided to go as he was, use force, and see how things went. If worse came to worst, he could always just use his backup plan.

“Hmm, but before I go...” King Boo mused, and then shrunk himself to the size of a normal Boo, dispelled his sinister look and carefully took off his prized crown. “I’d better look as inconspicuous as possible. I can’t have people attack me left and right simple due to me being who I am, now can I?”

Somehow, he felt more exposed with the way he looked now, and he ignored the urge to return back to normal. Summoning a swirling portal, King Boo let his crown get swallowed up and stored in a pocket dimension for later retrieval. Then he left his mansion, the downpour still going strong and showering him the moment he floated out of the front doors.

It really was a lovely night, and yet King Boo couldn’t quite find himself to enjoy it.

“Oh! H-hey!” Someone shouted from his left, and he spun around the moment he felt the sensation of another Boo being near him.

True enough, his beady eyes landed on another pair of identical eyes, the round and white body, short stubby arms and ghostly tail unmistakable as that of another Boo. The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds, and King Boo wondered if this Boo would recognize him – because he sure didn’t recall ever seeing them around.

The silence was broken when the other Boo floated over to him, a confused expression crossing their face. “I-I can’t believe it...another Boo! I thought they were all g-gone. Have you seen K-King Boo around?” They stuttered, looking him up and down.

King Boo felt both annoyed and relieved to see another Boo, even if it was one he didn’t recognize.

“King Boo? Why, that’s me!.” He stated in mock cheer. “But who are you? All of my subjects have disappeared, and yet here you are, one Boo I don’t know. That’s quite a strange coincidence, hmm?”

He loomed over the other Boo, but then remembered he was quite identical to the other one and thus not larger at the moment. As if sharing similar thoughts, the other Boo raised a brow, their usual smirk lessening.

“You?” They said, their voice dripping with skepticism. “T-that’s funny! K-King Boo isn’t that small, y-you know?” He laughed in typical Boo fashion.

King Boo would have rolled his eyes if he could. “I know that! But listen, my little Boo, I am on a mission, and this mission requires me to go undercover...hence my current form.”

He summoned the portal from earlier and fetched his crown from the swirly mess of purple and pink hues, and then levitated it up to rest on top of his round body – right where it belonged.

The other Boo paled, if that was even possible.

“Now, doesn’t this look quite familiar?” He hummed. “Heh heh heh, calm down! I’m not going to _eat_ you, lad!”

“K-K-K-K-King B-B-” The other Boo covered their face with their arms in both embarrassment and shame, a streak of pink coloring the area between their eyes.

King Boo waited for them to calm down, and then continued with their conversation.

“Now, tell me – who are you, and what is your business here?”

The second Boo quivered before him, but slowly composed themselves – at least enough to answer.

“I-I’m Bootray.” They began. “I wanted to be one of your followers, Your Majesty. I came from a small village, o-one where the Boos are p-peaceful, you see. B-but!” The Boo exclaimed, giving a timid smile. “I’ve always...always admired you, S-Sir, and so I ventured a-all the way over here to...to find you, a-and possibly join you, too...”

Well, what a pleasant turn of events. Boos from elsewhere coming to join him didn’t happen often, but still regularly enough for him to not feel surprised. Most of them were under his rule anyway, with only a few groups living their own separate lives in either peace or as _Bowser’s_ servants, of all the lowlifes.

“But then,” Bootray continued. “when I arrived...I-I saw something ghastly! A-A shadow fled with all of your Boos! I didn’t get to see them, but they went t-that way...”

Bootray pointed in the direction leading out of the woods surrounding his mansion, which in turn lead to another forest – Toadwood Forest, to be exact.

King Boo considered this.

“...Excellent, Bootray. I’ll gladly let you join me and my reign. You have already proven to be quite helpful, and that’s why I would LOATHE for anything unfortunate to happen to you, should you prove to have deceived me...”

As he inched closer, Bootray likewise floated backwards. King Boo laughed and made his face briefly gain back his haunting appearance, his glowing eyes flashing with unmistakable warning.

Bootray scooted as far back as he possibly could without leaving completely.

“I-I would never, Your Highness!”

King Boo smiled.

“I know you won’t.”

With the flick of an arm, King Boo’s face returned to that of a normal Boo’s, and his crown was once again placed within a swirling portal. He only threatened the little one because of previous experiences with rebellious Boos, and so it had become customary to inform his new subjects of the consequences that would befall them should they chose to betray him. No one wanted to cross him, and it was going to stay that way – after all, one day he would take his rightful place as supreme ruler of this world.

It was only a matter of time.

“Bootray, are you ready for your first mission as my loyal subject? I want you to search the library for any books containing information about this shadow you saw. They go by the name ‘Ghost Snatcher’...Pah! Such a foolish name. Almost as foolish as a certain green plumber’s...”

“Y-yes, Sir!” Bootray saluted – or at least they tried to. “I’ll start immediately!”

“You do that. If you find something, tell a purple ghost lady called Hellen Gravely. She can be found on the second floor, left to the dance room. I must take my leave now.”

“G-Good luck on your journey, Your Spookiness!”

They parted ways, one Boo headed for the library while the other went towards the looming forest.

* * *

The first living creature King Boo came across was a Goomba, the small brown being waddling through the creepy forest with the dead roots that once used to carry Toads’ vim to an alien factory. He knew this because a few of his Boos had fought Mario and Luigi during that whole Shroobs fiasco – not to mention the whole time-shenanigan mess. Trust him, receiving a message from a confused Boo who suddenly remembered a fight they previously didn’t know they had taken part in was an experience, to say the least. Then again, King Boo couldn’t say he was all that surprised, what with the _infernal_ Mario Brothers being involved.

Humans should _not_ have been allowed to be as strong as they were.

In any case, a Goomba was the last creature King Boo considered useful, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask it. Who knows, it might even have seen the shadow pass by when they fled with his little Boos.

With that in mind, King Boo approached it from behind, trailing the Goomba’s brisk walking pace. Its back was turned to him, and he had to stop himself from attacking then and there. Now was not the time to scare and toy with his prey, as amusing as that would have been.

To announce his presence, the king laughed in typical Boo fashion. The Goomba immediately froze in place, mid-step too, as its left foot was outstretched. No doubt did the little thing recognize such a laugh. King Boo could already taste the fear oozing out of it, and he absorbed it like it was the finest vine.

“Heh heh heh...I have some questions for you, Goomba...You wouldn’t mind sharing with me, now would you?” The king of all Boos stated, his grin wide and his tongue hanging from his mouth.

The Goomba began shivering like a blizzard had just passed by, and King Boo belatedly realized he had lowered the temperature without even noticing. Reeling his powers in, the king let the air return to its previous humidity – it had recently stopped raining, and the sun was slowly starting to rise beyond the horizon, coloring the sky several different shades of oranges, yellows, and reds.

King Boo began feeling impatience seeping through his ghostly form.

“Well?” He snapped, glaring daggers at the cowering fool. “Speak up, or at least have the audacity to face me!”

The fungus-based mortal yelped, but did in fact turn around – slowly, oh so very slowly. Once they were face to face, the Goomba’s frightened expression gazed up at the floating Boo, its toothed mouth hanging slightly open.

“A Boo!” It yelled, taking several steps back, which turned out to be a bad idea when the Goomba’s back thudded against a tree holding the remnants of a drained Toad. This only managed to further frighten the little fungus. “What?!” It shouted. “What do ya want, ya cretin! Why ain’t ya covering yer face, don’t you guys do that when people look ya in the eyes?!”

King boo chuckled again. “I see you know at least that much. How _delightful_. Yes, yes, it’s true, we Boos are very shy by nature, but some of us...handle it better than others.” His ever-present frown then furrowed. “But that’s _not_ what I asked you.”

The Goomba glanced back and forth, likely searching for a way out of this situation. “W-well! I ain’t telling ya nothin’!” It said bravely, or perhaps foolishly.

King Boo flicked his tongue at the Goomba, landing a solid hit that sent it flying to the right. The mortal lay there, stunned.

King Boo floated over to it, studying the wounded Goomba with indifference.

“As I said before; that’s NOT what I asked you.”

“Wh-what did y-ya even ask?!” The Goomba shrieked.

“Have you seen a shadow pass by, or perhaps even a horde of Boos?”

“N-nah, man, you’re the only _psycho_ Boo I’ve seen in years!”

King Boo sighed. “A pity, really.”

Deeming this Goomba utterly useless, the Boo began to take his leave when suddenly, the fungus-based creature shouted.

“Y-yeah, ya better run!”

King Boo stilled. Then he turned around slowly, giving the Goomba an unimpressed look.

“...Really? That’s the best you can come up with? That’s really sad, I’m not gonna lie. I suppose I can do something other than leave, then, if this is how you’re going to act. Hmm, how about I make a painting out of you? I’ve always wanted one of each type of mortal...”

The Goomba shrieked and jumped to its feet. “Y-yer insane!”

King Boo laughed. “It’s decided then! Now where to hang you…?”

As he pondered this, he waved an arm and summoned a painting from one of his swirling portals. The frame was of a bronze material rather than the expensive and lavish golden frames he usually reserved for individuals such as Mario and _Luigi_. The Goomba turned tail, running as fast as its short feet would take it. It didn’t get far, however, when they collided face-first into yet another tree and fell down, disoriented.

King Boo cackled as he levitated the painting above the useless Goomba.

“Now, put on your best scared face!” He told it, and the thing complied.

“Y-yer HIM, ain’t ya...” The Goomba uttered just before the picture frame slammed down on it, forever imprisoning the fellow within a painting.

King Boo studied its horrified expression. “Him? you’ll have to be a bit more specific than that, my dear possession. Ahaha!”

Well, this had turned out to be a huge waste of time. Hopefully, the next mortal he came across would be more cooperative, or else his art collection would surely expand faster than he could possibly comprehend. Throwing the painting into yet another pocket – to be kept within another mansion of his in the Paranormal Dimension – King Boo went on his way, his annoyance slowly but surely growing.

Unbeknownst to the king, another Goomba had been hiding within a nearby bush, shaking like one of the many leaves concealing her. She had been on her way to meet her friend, Pierce, when that scary Boo had appeared. She couldn’t believe what she had just witnessed, but she knew at least one thing;

She had to tell the Mario Brothers, and fast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
